Game apparatus



` Feb. 6, 1934. c. A.oLSEN Er AL GAME APPARATUS Filed Sept. 24, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 6, 1934. C, A OLSEN ET AL A '1,946,232

GAME APPARATUS Filed Sept. 24, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Cil s'T'rEs lPATENT man GAME APPARATUS Clair A. Glsen and Lesiie Leo Schmidt, Burlington, Iowa Application September 24, 1930 Serial No. 484,114

2 Claims.

This invention relates to gaine apparatus and more particularly to equipment for outdoor recreation, the principal object of the invention being to provide a court upon which may be played a ball game in simulation of the ordinary gaine of billiards or pool as played on the regulation indoor table, but on a larger scale and requiring increased physical exercise which will inure to the benefit of the player as well as the mental enjoyment from the game. Other objects are to fproduce a durable structure which will withstand the action of the elements and retain its Working qualities, and to attain certain advantages as will hereinafter more fully appear.

The invention consists in the novel arrangement and adaptation of the structure, and in the parts and Vcombinations and arrangements 'of parts hereinafter described and pointed out with particularity in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating a practical adaptation of the invention,

Figure 1 is a top plan view;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary section, on an enlarged scale, taken on or about the line 2 2 of Figure 1*;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary View partly in top plan and partly in horizontal section, illustrating details of the rail structure;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary plan view in the region of a ball pocket or trap; and

Figure 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Figure 5.

Referring now to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates the base or bed portion of the court, which, as shown, is rectangular and constructed as a single body or slab of concrete. However, this portion of the structure may be made of Wood, metal, paving or other suitable ooring material or compound. Obviously, the top face of this base portion or bed is flat and level, and of any desirable size and proportion but, for practical purposes the average dimensions will be 1l) feet in width by 20 feet in length for the working area o between the side rails now to be described.

The side rails, designated by the numeral 11, may be formed of wood, metal or concrete. Preferably, the rails are made of hard Wood and detachably secured to the base portion or bed 10 by o a multiplicity of upstanding studs or anchor bolts 12 having enlargements 13 at their inner ends which are imbedded in the body of concrete constituting said base portion or bed 10, the projecting portions of said studs or bolts 12 being received in apertures provided therefor in the rails l1 and having on their outer ends nuts 14 which clamp the rails in place.

The Working area or the base portion or bed 10 is covered by a sheet of cushioning material such as canvas, cloth, carpet, linoleum or other suitable floor covering material which will witstand thewear resulting from the normal usage of the court, as well as the action of the elements. Preferably, heavy canvas will be the material used, and this sheet, designated by the numeral 15, has its marginal portions interposed between the base or bed 1Q and the side rails 1l, the eX- treme edge portions being extended up the outer sides of the rails and secured by wedge strips which are forced into grooves 17 provided therefor in the rails. By this arrangement, a fabric covering l5 is stretched tightly throughout its length and breadth, and is iirrnly clamped in place by the rails 11.

At the four corners of the court and at the middle of the long sides thereof are provided ball traps or pockets 18 in an arrangement similar to the pockets of the regulation indoor billiard table. These traps or pockets 12 are provided by depressions .19 formed in the body portion or bed 10 at the outer sides of the rails 11, and leading into the depressions from the working surface of the bed are inclined grooves 20. Located above the depressions 19 are split rings or guard loops 21 at whose end portions are bracket members 22, said bracket members having arms 23 which are secured on the meeting ends of the rails 11, the end portions of the rails being rounded at their corners and constituting guide walls at the entrances to the respective ball traps or pockets.y y

On the bracket members 22 are bearing extensions 24 in which are pivotally supported the hinge members 25 of ball trap gates 26, which are normally suspended across the entrances to the said ball traps 13. The gates 26 are free to swing inwardly with respect to the ball traps 18 when a ball is driven into 'the entrance to the trap, but are prevented from swinging outwardly, whereby to permit the balls to enter the traps and to retain them therein. Stop pins 27 and 2S are rei spectively provided on opposite sides of the gates 2S to limit the swinging movement of the latter.

The inner sides of the rails 11 have beveled upper portions 29 and undercut lower portions 30 producing a ridge along which is mounted a suitable cushion strip 31. The cushion 31 may be made oi rubber, leather, cork or as a coil wire spring, but, preferably, the cushion as shown comprises standard rubber tubing or hose which is fitted into the groove 32 in the ridge portion of,

the rail 11 (see Figure 2 of the drawings), said tubing having a wire 33 extended therethrough and engaged at intervals throughout its length by the hooked end portions 34 of bolts 35, which latter are received in horizontal openings provided therefor in the rails 11 and secured in place by nuts 36 applied to their screw threaded outer end portions. Obviously, by tightening the nuts 36 on the bolts 35, the resilient tubing 31 is rlrmly held in place. In this connection, it may be here stated that the ordinary commercial rubber hose tubing is ideal for the rail cushions in that it is capable of withstanding the exposure to the Weather as Well as possessing sunicient inherent resilient qualities for the purposes intended, and, it is easily applied, as it is only necessary to cut slotted openings in the tubing at the respective places Where the bolts 35 are applied.

The base portion or bed 10 may be extended any desirable distance outside of the rails ll, but, in any event, it is preferable to have these outer portions of the bed of suicient width so that the player may conveniently stand and move about thereon in making the plays on the court. In the outer portions of the bed l0 it is also preferable to provide a plurality of elongated grooves 37 which may be conveniently utilized as score racks for holding the balls which the respective players have removed from the working area of the court in play. v

In most cases the top face of the base portion or bed l0 of the court will be Hush with the surface of the ground but, obviously, in some cases, particularly Where a plurality of courts are provided in a given eld, the respective courts may be terraced and in that way separated from each other.

In practice, the several balls, designated in the drawings by the numeral 38, Will be of a size for use on the court of the present invention in proportion to the size of the regulation balls as used on the standard indoor billiard table, and they may be made of Wood, metal, rubber, or any other suitable composition. The number of balls used may correspond to the sets used in the various billiard or pool games which it is desired to stimulate on the court of the present invention. The various implements for driving the cue ball may correspond to the usual equipment for the ordinary billiard table but, of course, on a larger scale.

In playing the several games on the court the player, While making a stroke with the cue or other suitable implement, may stand or kneel on any portion of the court bed either inside or outside of the rails, subject to the rules and regulations of the particular game to be played.

Obviously, the structure admits of considerable amount of modification without in the least departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as dened by the appended claims. The invention, therefore, is not limited to the specic construction and arrangement shown in the accompanying drawings.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a game court of the character described. a guard rail having a longitudinally grooved inner face, and a cushion comprising an inherently resilient tube seated in said groove, said tube having a rod or wire extending longitudinally therein, and a series of securing bolts extending through transverse openings in said rail and having hooked end portions projected through registering openings provided therefor in said tube, said hooked end portions engaging said rod'or wire whereby to clamp the tube in place.

2. In a game court of the character described, a bed, boundary rails detachably mounted on said bed, and a padding sheet covering said bed within the confines of said boundary rails, the marginal portions of said padding sheet `being extended under said boundary rails thereby `to be clamped, and the extreme marginalrportions of AH5 said padding sheet being extended and secured by Wedge strips inserted in grooves provided therefor in the outer faces of said boundaryrails.

CLAIR A. OLSEN. LESLIE LEO SCHMIDT. 

